Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2012: Our top 10 insider moments, plus 38 photos from the stage to the backstage

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2012

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2012

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Or jump to: THE SHOW |BACKSTAGE | FRONT ROW | RED CARPET

Glitter, gloss, wings, 6-inch heels, plenty of pink, big, sexy hair and legs that go on for days—the Victoria’s Secret Angels know how to give good glam. Hours before the annual Victoria’s Secret fashion show began, we headed backstage amidst clouds of hairspray, racks of Swarovski-encrusted pink satin Victoria’s Secret robes and throngs of editors/bloggers/photographers to get the inside scoop from the heavenly ones (The jitters! The diets! The costumes!). Pre-show, Twitter was a-buzz with news of Karlie Kloss’s new ‘do but post-show it was all about her controversial Native American-inspired costume, which subsequently will be pulled from the televised show on December 4th. From Justin Bieber to Bruno Mars to mega-babe Rihanna, the musical performances didn’t disappoint, nor did the star-studded front row which included Alexander Wang, 30 Rock’s Katrina Bowden, Debbie Harry, members of Kings of Leon , Gossip Girl’s Jessica Szohr and Vanessa Hudgens and her boyfriend Austin Butler. Here, FASHION shares our all-access pass to this year’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, backstage and beyond….

1. Karlie Kloss chopped her hair into a sleek bob with fringe but hair whiz Orlando Pita gave her bouncy extensions backstage, whipping Twitter into a frenzy.
2. New mom Adriana Lima hit the runway only two months after giving birth. Abs fab, indeed.
3. Doutzen Kroes gets the award for friendliest Angel–she chatted with media, posed for pics and even admitted she still gets nervous before the show.
4. Newbie Angel-on-the-block Cara Delevingne (Burberry’s campaign star) hammed it up during hair and makeup making faces at the cameras and even dropping the occasional F-bomb.
5. Front row fans Kings of Leon cheered loudly when Lily Aldridge—Angel and wife of front man Caleb Followill—took the spotlight as a beautiful blossom.
6. Spotted: Miranda Kerr touching up her own makeup backstage.
7. A smile? A kiss? When asked what her debut runway move would be first time Angel Hilary Rhoda said she was undecided. In the end, she gave a playful wave.
8. Rihanna’s pearl-strewn Chanel sunnies gave extra star wattage to her runway performance.
9. Cool without the commitment: Liu Wen’s airbrushed body tats took six hours to apply. Our fave? The intricate Mermaid on her left thigh.
10. Most heavenly pair of wings: Lindsay Ellingson’s deco-inspired feathers paired with a beaded corset. Now all we need to do is find an occasion to wear them…

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